News

Netball Australia’s Sport Development team have done a fantastic job delivering a variety of programs for our netball community at home and overseas over the last 12 months.

Some of the great work that’s been done in 2013 – in conjunction with Netball Australia’s member organisations – in areas such as junior participation, coaching, umpiring, international development and inclusion will ensure that netball continues to go from strength to strength at grassroots level.

Here’s a snap shot of some the great projects that the team has been involved with in 2013:

Marie Little OAM Shield

Sydney’s Anne Clarke Centre played host to the best netball players with an intellectual disability from around the country in August as they took to the court vying for the inaugural Marie Little OAM Shield.

While the competition has been running for a few years, 2013 was the first year that Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia played for the Shield, named in honour of the founder of AUSRAPID. Marie Little OAM travelled across from Adelaide to watch the action and present the Shield to the winning team: Victoria, in a closely fought contest.

The three states played four matches each over a round robin format with Victoria and South Australia finishing on the same amount of wins.

Victoria narrowly edged out South Australia on percentage to take out the 2013 Shield, continuing their domination of the All Abilities national competition in recent years.

The Victorian players, coaching staff and team managers were all smiles as they collected their gold medals and the Shield. South Australia claimed silver as runners-up.

The matches were played concurrently with games in the final round of the Australian Netball League and players from the Southern Force, Victorian Fury and Netball New South Wales’ two sides came across to support their state teammates.

ANZ NetSetGO

Throughout 2013 the ANZ NetSetGO program has been working on an exciting new resource aimed at the 5-7 year old program.

Netball Australia sees it as an innovative product that incorporates music, dance and games into sessions while still developing the important netball skills and basic game awareness.

The resource includes a DVD with step by step dance instructions for two dances, with a very special dance instructor – Australian Netball Diamond Kim Ravaillion.

In conjunction with the DVD, ANZ NetSetGO coaches will also receive a suite of session plans to help provide a fun, safe and inclusive environment for all participants. You may have also noticed that ANZ NetSetGO has undergone a makeover during 2013.

The new look complements some of the great recent additions and modifications to the program. Stay tuned to see what else is in store for ANZ NetSetGO in 2014.

Umpires

After months of consultation with all state and territory Member Organisations and key stakeholders within the high performance environment, Netball Australia implemented a world-class umpiring program to ensure it remains at the forefront of international development.

This new pathway complements the National Umpire Development Framework (NUDF) and is aligned to the Netball Australia athlete pathway. It provides a staged approach to an umpire’s development and outlines the programs and support services along with the policies and procedures that describe the identification and development of umpires within the high performance environment.

The new system will help identify and develop the next generation of umpires in Australia and provide a world class system that prepares them to perform at their best at national and international events.

Netball Australia once again experienced success within the national and international arenas in relation to umpire appointments.

Six umpires – Michelle Phippard, Sharon Kelly, Clare McCabe, Kate Wright, Paula Ferguson and Rachael Ayre officiated in international Test matches during the year, including Tests in England, Fiji and New Zealand.

Four AA/IUA umpires – Marc Henning, Josh Bowring, Helen George and Jemma Carlton – were part of the umpiring pool for August’s World Youth Cup in Glasgow with George officiating the Bronze Medal match between England and South Africa.

Our umpires were also called on to officiate in the Asian World Cup, Nations Cup in Singapore and the International Schoolgirls competition. Next year, for Australians will be part of the umpiring pool for the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Scotland.

Kau Mai Tonga and WHO Award

Netball Australia, in partnership with the Tongan and Australian Governments, through the Australian Sport Outreach Program (ASOP), was recognised with a ‘Best Practice’ award by the World Health Organisation in June.

The Kau Mai Tonga program was nominated for the award through the Healthy Islands Recognition program. Kau Mai Tonga uses netball as a tool to increase physical activity amongst women and girls to combat non-communicable diseases (NCDs).

Netball Australia has been providing technical input through the ASOP program to assist TNA to build local capacity to deliver netball programs and organise large-scale netball carnivals across Tonga throughout June and July to promote the program.

More than 6000 women and girls in Tonga have become more active in the last twelve months as a result of netball activities offered through this program with Netball Australia’s support.

Pacific Netball Partnership Forum

In October, representatives from five Pacific Island national netball associations spent the week at Netball Australia HQ in Melbourne for the annual Pacific Netball Partnership forum.

Netball Australia manages the Pacific Netball Partnership through the Australian Government’s Pacific Sports Partnership program, which aims to use sport to increase the physical activity of Pacific islanders and contribute to positive health and social development outcomes.

The delegation from the Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea, which included presidents, CEOs, development officers and national operations managers, took part in a range of seminars and workshops with key Netball Australia staff.

Participants were encouraged to take ideas back to their respective national associations to help grow their game and build the sustainability of their operations.

Coles Netball Schools Program

In early October Netball Australia announced a brand new partnership with Coles to help ensure that netball has a continuous presence at schools and ultimately becomes the sport of choice for many students, in particular young girls.

The launch was held at the Netball South Australia Stadium in the lead up to the Coles International Test Series with a strong media turnout.

Since the launch, over 500 school teachers have signed up as ambassadors and in 2014, the Coles Netball Schools program will provide new resources with a strong focus on Secondary Schools.

Malaysia

Netball Australia, supported by the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Australia Malaysia Institute, continued work with the Malaysian Netball Association (MNA) to implement their junior development program, Jom Pi Jaring.

Jom Pi Jaring is modeled on the successful NetSetGO program and provides children aged 5-8 with the best possible learning and playing experience that enables them to enjoy a positive introduction to netball.

The program provides opportunities for young girls to be more physically active and acquire new interpersonal links through their involvement in netball in a safe and supportive environment.

In November, Netball Australia staff delivered training for local coaches and teachers to ensure the quality delivery of the netball program. Established in 2012, Netball Australia initially trained 30 local coaches and teachers through the program, to pilot Jom Pi Jaring in 14 centres throughout Malaysia.

Nine new identified centres will be introduced to the program in 2014.

“The delivery of further coach education underlines Netball Australia’s commitment to our relationship with the MNA, and the Asian region, through the sharing of information, resources and learnings to build the capability of both organisations and the broader communities they represent,” Netball Australia’s International Development Manager Olivia Philpott, said.

One Netball Advisory Group

The role of the One Netball Advisory Group is to provide culturally appropriate advice and recommendations on various aspects of netball’s policies, programs and services as they relate to culturally diverse communities issues.

They also ensure that these issues are represented and addressed appropriately in Netball Australia’s programs, policies and resources. Advice and contacts provided by the Advisory Group during the year of DIAC funding has been instrumental in guiding the direction and development of the One Netball program.

Each member brings a unique view and skill set and is proactive in identifying ways to promote the One Netball program to a broader audience and provide opportunities for Netball Australia to build new relationships with networks within CaLD communities.